‘Our superpower’: Josh Hannay declares players are ready to ‘die for the jersey and the state’

Josh Hannay has delivered a memorable final message to Queensland fans that gives a glimpse into just how passionate the Maroons are.

Maroons assistant coach Josh Hannay says his players are prepared to ‘die for the state’.

Queensland assistant coach Josh Hannay has sent a powerful message to Maroons supporters north of the border, declaring his players will “die for the jersey and die for the state” when they run out for the Origin opener on Wednesday night.

The Maroons are in enemy territory as they look to win a third-straight series under coach Billy Slater, with the visitors the warm favourites in what will be slippery conditions in Sydney’s west.

Queensland’s passion has always been something they’ve spruiked, and Hannay says it’ll be their “superpower” going into game one.

Josh Hannay made some bold statements about just how passionate Queensland players are.

“The one thing I’ll say to our supporters back home who we love and represent is that our guys are acutely aware of what this football team means to them every time they take the field and put the jersey on,” he said.

“Every one of them will go out tonight and die for the jersey and die for the state.

“I know they’re strong words, but that’s literally how our guys feel about representing the people of Queensland.

“Our connection to the state is our superpower. We play for our people and we’ll play for our people again tonight.”

While the Queensland squad is largely settled, there are still questions over how Slater will use Selwyn Cobbo off the bench.

Slater staunchly defended the selection gamble on Tuesday, with the Maroons picking the Broncos outside back along with hooker Harry Grant on a bench that looks to be a middle forward short.

It remains unclear how the Maroons will use Selwyn Cobbo if there aren’t any injuries in the Origin opener. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

“We’re still not sure whether to start him in the front row or not,” Hannay joked, not wanting to chat about the vacant Eels job.

“We’ve got a lot of contingencies in place around how to best inject Selwyn. There is a lot of flexibility within our team, so when and where he comes into the game, I think the state of play will dictate that to a degree.

“We’ve certainly got some ideas.

“It’s probably a non-traditional bench to a degree.

“One thing that Bill has shown during his time in charge is that he’s not prepared to take a risk if he thinks it’s not in the best interests of the game. We feel like Selwyn on the bench is best suited for our team.

“It may look like a risk externally, but internally we certainly feel good about our bench.”

Unlike the Blues, the Maroons do have outside back coverage on the bench if there’s an injury. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

Queensland’s bench lacks the grunt that the Blues have gone with, but they could have the edge if there are injuries out wide given Cobbo provides them with cover, while NSW has opted against selecting an outside back on the bench.

“Whoever wins gets to laugh last,” Hannay replied when asked about the different approaches.

“If we come away with the result, then everyone will laud our bench. If we don’t, everyone will laud their bench.

“We’ll see how it pans out.”